Kit, Academy 13207, US Medium Tank M4A3 Sherman 105mm Howitzer & M1 Dozer Blade

ACADEMY/MRC


Product Specifications.

13207, US Medium Tank M4A3 Sherman 105mm Howitzer & M1 Dozer Blade. Contains: 443 injection-molded styrene parts, two vinyl track lengths, two decal markings schemes, and 12 pages of instructions in 19 steps.


Introduction.

Over the years, Academy has slowly been building up their M4 Sherman medium tank-based kit inventory, which began almost a decade ago with their release of an Israeli M51 Supersherman. Most recently, Academy released the M4A2 76mm and M4A2 75mm, all based on superstructures that had 47-degree glacis plates and enlarged hatch lids for the driver and bow gunner.


This latest effort is based on these recent kits, the older Horizontal Volute Suspension System, and a new turret. For good measure, an M1/M1A1 Bulldozer blade is also provided.


Tracks.

These are provided in traditional vinyl lengths, one per side. They represent the T80 steel chevron double-pin type. From the outside they look the part, but the guide horns on the inner faces are not accurate due to mold constraints. So, they are “nothing fancy”, but are certainly adequate. They must be heat-joined and have quite robust pins and holes for that purpose.


Suspension System.

This, as mentioned above, is from Academy’s 1997 M51 kit. At the time of its release it was thought to be quite well-done and was certainly the best Horizontal Volute Suspension System available in styrene. Comparing it to references shows that the details are accurate; each bogie unit consists of ten parts. The return rollers and their mounts are separate parts, while the two-part idler wheels get mounted direct to the axle molded onto the hull part. The drive sprockets have a choice of solid or open tooth rings, and are mounted to separate final drive housings.


Hull.

This comes from a slide-mold and includes the suspension bogie mounting plates and sponson floors molded on. The belly has the escape hatch lid in place as well as stiffening ribs and drain plug details. The access plate for the engine is for an M4A1 radial engine and is therefore incorrect for this version. Considering its location, this may or may not be an issue with modelers. Bow extensions are separate parts for the sides of the final drive housing and there are sponson fillets for the rear end.


A separate rear hull plate, with separate engine access hatch lid (with separate grab handle) encloses the stern. Separate “fish-tail” exhaust pipes, idler wheel adjustment housings and tow pintle with mount are provided. The “ears” to mount tow clevises are molded in place and need holes drilled through. The exhaust deflector is the later type and comes with separate side fillets. It is marred by many ejector pin marks on the outer surface. These will need attention; it would appear that filling them with styrene rod, trimming and sanding will do the trick.


The transmission/final drive housing has some foundry numbers and some cast texture. The former may not be appropriately located for the later “sharp-nose” housing, while the latter will definitely need enhancement. The separate attachment strip has nice recessed bolt details.


Superstructure.

As I mentioned, the superstructure is the later large-hatch type with the 47-degree glacis plate. Typically, it retains the recessed weld beads, which are common errors on all but the most recently-released M4 kits. By now, most modelers will know what to do with these! Most details are separate including fuel, oil and water filler caps (all with detailed openings); tools, vents, lift hooks, head and tail lamps (along with their overly-thick brush guards) and engine hatch lid stops. The engine deck hatch lids are separate parts but they have their grab handles molded in place. Curiously, the separate engine deck part that they fit into has separate grab handles!


The driver’s and bow gunner’s hatch lids feature separate periscope heads, which can be depicted opened or closed. These include separate covers, rotator plates and nicely-done brush guards. Likewise, the two periscopes mounted in-between these stations are separate parts and can be depicted opened or closed. Separate mounts for the external gun travel lock are given as is a nice multi-part .30 cal. machine-gun for the bow. There is also a pair of side-view mirrors, which were sometimes seen; each has a sink mark in the center of the “mirror’s” surface. It should be noted that some photos show the MG removed with an emergency release cable for the Bulldozer blade coming out of the opening in the gun shield.


Separate side as well as front fenders are provided as are separate braces for the sides. The side fenders have some “rolled plate” texture on their surfaces, which is not appropriate since they were made of sheet metal. There are locating holes on these surfaces for the braces. Using references, holes need to be added to the sides of these parts to indicate where the sand shields would be mounted. Nice T80 spare track links are included for the side; these have the proper attachment hardware molded in place for a completely detailed appearance.


The rear plate receives the typical four-piece stowage rack and an engine starter crank. Do not fit the gun tube cleaning rods underneath this assembly. They are for the 76mm gun and not used on this kit. The cleaning rods for the 105mm howitzer were stowed on the port side of the rear deck, but they are not provided in the kit. Finally, there is an infantry telephone box for the starboard side of the rear plate.


Turret.

The turret is all new and comes in the traditional upper and lower halves. The upper half comes from a slide-mold so the pistol port hatch opening is properly molded in place (a faint seam will need attention); there is a separate lid that can be shown opened or closed. If shown open, it will need the actuation assembly added.


There is a major problem with the lower edge of the upper turret shell. It would appear that the kit’s designer misunderstood the configuration of the added cheek armor on the gunner’s side, which was cast in place on later turrets. The “lower lip” of the added armor goes completely around the entire turret instead of being only in that area. This will need a bit of work to rectify. In addition, there is something strange going on below the commander’s cupola, on the turret side. In essence, this turret’s shapes are not as accurate as they should have been.


Photographs of the two tanks for which markings are provided in this kit, show that both had various clips and frames for a canvas mantlet dust cover. While the latter was not fitted, the clips (obviously) were. These must be added by the modeler if depicting these particular tanks.


The roof has separate dome vents, periscope heads and plates, gunner’s periscope sight and mounts, commander’s blade sight, as well as pintle mount and travel locks for the .50 cal. M2 machine-gun. The commander’s cupola is the later style with vision ports around its rim and separate hatch lid. This has a separate grab handle as well as periscope head and cover; there is no internal hatch lid detail. The loader’s oval hatch lid is also separate. It includes nice separate counter-balance springs, separate lift handle and internal detail. Two ejector pin marks mar the inner surface, but they will disappear with a minimum of sanding. There is a separate hold-open catch for the hatch lid.


The provided .50 cal. M2 machine-gun consists of a total of six parts, including separate sights, cocking handle, trigger, grip and receiver cover. The ammunition box and tray is made up of six more parts while the final part is the yoke to hold the gun in place. In addition, there is a nice seven-part .30 cal. MG, which is not for use in this kit.


The main gun tube comes pre-bored through the use of a slide mold. However, it has knock-out pin marks on one side as well as some blemishes and the usual mold seam. It will need careful clean-up. The mantle and rotor shield are separate parts so the gun can elevate. The rotor shield has some foundry numbers molded-on, but it has no casting texture. Again, the modeler will have to resort to the usual tricks to dress this part up.


The turret sprue also contains two US and two British jerry cans as well as one US oil can. These are all multi-part items and can be used as the modeler wishes.


Bulldozer Blade.

This kit’s main “added attraction” is the ‘Dozer blade. In overall appearance, it has captured the prototype quite well. However, there may be some dimensional issues. According to Hunnicutt, the M1 blade was 124-inches wide; the M1A1 (used for HVSS tanks) was 138-inches wide. This equates to 89.98mm in 1/35th-scale for the M1 blade, and 100.14 for the M1A1 blade. The kit blade is 95mm wide; apparently the designers split the difference!


Molding, Fit and Engineering.

Fit of the main components was good-to-excellent. There are a number of issues regarding the location of ejector pin marks, as well as some shrink marks. While none are extremely daunting, they will provide some extra work for the more finicky modeler. Molding overall is fine, if un-inspired.


Accuracy and Details.

There are several accuracy issues as mentioned above; the turret contours, the ‘Dozer blade’s width and the belly plate come to mind. Some detail is a bit “chunky” or less-refined than one may wish for.


Instructions.

These are typical for Academy and are clearly-presented as line drawings. Be careful if building your tank with the ‘Dozer blade, since you must leave off parts E-3 on the two forward-most bogie units per side. In step 4 they are all shown in place, while in step 16 they have magically disappeared. You have been warned!


Decals and Markings Information.

The markings are rather un-inspired and are limited to two USMC tanks as seen during the Korean War. Each has Tac numbers on the turret sides (B43 and D43) with white stars in several locations as well as USMC serial numbers. Both are overall Olive Drab and are confirmed as accurate by a photograph that appears in most of the references below with “Korea” in their title. It appears that B43 wore the Tac marking of the 1st Marine Tank Battalion on the superstructure side plate; this is not provided in the kit.


Conclusion.

I have mixed feelings concerning this kit. On the one hand, it will build easily enough into a decent replica, straight out of the box. With a bit of extra work by a more experienced modeler (with good references) it could be an eye-popper. On the other hand, this kit illustrates that (once again) Academy’s designers have fallen short in the research department and to a lesser degree in the design phase. All of this could be forgiven had the ‘Dozer blade been properly-rendered, which, alas, appears not to be the case.


Recommended with reservations.


Frank V. De Sisto


References consulted for this review included, but were not limited to:


1. “Sherman: A History of the US Medium Tank”, Taurus, by R.P. Hunnicutt.
2. “The Sherman at War”, Concord 7001, by S. Zaloga.
3. “The Sherman at War (2)”, Concord 7036, by S. Zaloga.
4. “US Tank Battles in Germany 1944-45”, Concord 7046, by S. Zaloga.
5. “The Battle of the Bulge”, Concord 7045, by S. Zaloga.
6. “The Sherman in US and Allied Service”, Osprey Vanguard 26, by S. Zaloga.
7. “US Armour Camouflage and Markings 1917-45”, Osprey Vanguard 39, by S. Zaloga.
8. “M4 (76mm) Sherman Medium Tank 1943-65”, Osprey New Vanguard 73, by S. Zaloga.
9. “Sherman in Action”, Squadron 2016, by B. Culver.
10. “Walk Around M4 Sherman”, Squadron 5701, by J. Mesko.
11. “M4 Medium (Sherman)”, AFV Weapons Profile #29, by P. Chamberlain & C. Ellis.
12. “US Armored Divisions, the European Theater of Operations 1944-45”, Osprey Battle Orders 3, by S. Zaloga.
13. “US Armored Units in the North African and Italian Campaogns 1942-45”, Osprey Battle Orders 21, by S. Zaloga.
14. “US Tank and tank Destroyer Battalions in the ETO 1944-45”, Osprey Battle Orders 10, by S. Zaloga.
15. “Tank Battles of the Pacific War 1941-1945”, Concord 7004, by S. Zaloga.
16. “Modelling the US Army M4 (75mm) Sherman Medium Tank”, Osprey Modelling 35, by S. Zaloga.
17. “Modeler’s Guide to the Sherman”, Ampersand, by P. Harlem.
18. “Marine Corps Tank Battles in Korea”, Casemate, by O. Gilbert.
19. “Tank Warfare in Korea 1950-53”, Concord 7003, by S. Zaloga & G. Balin.
20. “Armor in Korea, a Pictorial History”, Squadron 6038, by J. Mesko.
21. “Tank War Korea”, Tanks Illustrated 14, by S. Dunstan.
22. “Armour of the Korean War 1950-53”, Osprey Vanguard 27, by S. Dunstan & T. Hadler.
23. “US Armored Funnies”, Concord 7052, by S. Zaloga.


Academy kits are available from retail and mail order sources. For additional information see their web site at: www.academy.co.kr.


Delete abwehrabwehr from email address